


When Nerds Collide

by Mabodofu



Category: Kagerou Project
Genre: M/M, everyone has become a nerd in this fic, happy go lucky regular school life AU, incomplete 4ever i'm prbly not gonna finish this sry, kuroshin, my first fic in 5 years be gentle with me, probably gonna be ooc
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-04-18
Updated: 2014-08-30
Packaged: 2018-01-19 19:15:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 15,440
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1480969
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mabodofu/pseuds/Mabodofu
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Shintaro has always been close with the Kokonose twins, but what will change when he learns that they were never twins, but triplets all this time!? [this fic is dead im sorry]</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Kisaragi Shintaro didn't want to go to school. In fact, he never wanted to go to school. But when you had a dumb little sister slam against your door every morning, it was hard to just keep on sleeping.

Or at least, that's the reason Shintaro liked to keep telling himself as to why he'd get up in the morning.

“Shintaro! Good morning!” Ayano flashed her trademark sparkling smile, and it made Shintaro avert his eyes as usual. She skipped up to him as they walked to school, and began to hum a little.

Everyday life was pretty regular, and Shintaro would sooner attempt a back flip before he would admit to somewhat enjoying his fun day to day activities. His being a nerd truly knew no bounds. In the morning he'd run into Ayano on their way to school. At school he tended to hang out with her and a colorful cast of other schoolmates. Then outside of classes, he would at times end up spending more time alongside his so called friends. He liked to pretend he was just tagging along with Ayano and others most of the time, but in truth that was just simply not true.

“Shintaro, get your ass outta your seat and go grab some curry bread or something!” Takane slammed her hands onto his desk and gave him a mean gaze. Why did she always have to come by the class anyways. “You're always just sitting in one place. At this rate your rear might enlarge times 3.”

“What about yours, Miss 38 Hours Mario Marathon Girl. It'll be nice seeing you when your butt's so big you can't fit in a bus seat anymore.” Before Takane could smack his head sideways, he stood up and darted out of the door. Takane used to be more reserved (to some extent) around him, but she really got annoying as heck when they became more comfortable around each other.

As he made it into the hall, he could hear Takane's voice from behind yelling, “Ayano wants a yakisoba bread! Don't come waltzing back with your hands empty, first-year!”

While Shintaro initially intended to just relax somewhere until lunch break was over, he thought to maybe just check in and see if any yakisoba bread was still left. Just to check. Not because Ayano wanted any or anything no way.

Before he could get to his destination however, he noticed some familiar faces loitering in the halls. Upon being noticed, one of these faces perked up and smiled. “Oh, Shintaro! Fancy meeting you here.”

“We go to the same school, stupid. Of course we'd run into each other at some point.”

Haruka only laughed in reply. His brother Konoha, who was standing next to him, seemed to have nothing to say (much less think) of the conversation. He did say, “Hello,” though.

“Hi, Konoha.” Shintaro gave a kind of half grin at them. They were definitely some of the more tolerable kids in school, although Shintaro was always left wondering why Konoha seemed more like a robot than an actual classmate. He was just kind of weird like that. Not that it was bad or anything, Konoha was a pretty great guy regardless of his seemingly emotionally stunted behavior.

Before Shintaro could continue on his merry way however, Haruka grabbed him by the sleeve. “Umm,” he started, “actually I have a little bit of a favor to ask you.” The pretty boy seemed slightly troubled, and of course this troubled Shintaro as he was very much weak to sad people.

“Uh, yes?”

“Actually, well this is something I haven't even told Takane yet! It's kinda, well I don't really know what to say about it, but I just wanted to let you know.” He was skirting around the main subject, and Shintaro was confused.

“Wait a sec, Takane's the bigger boss of things around here right? I mean she's closer to you anyways, so why ask me for help?”

“It's just a bit complicated is all! Takane may seem like a boss-type, but she's really just a sweet girl y'know? To be honest, my other brother's transferring here tomorrow, and I just wanted someone tough like you to help me keep an eye on him.” He stared deeply into Shintaro's eyes with that irresistibly intense sparkle. Of course, Shintaro's inner strength failed to pull through.

He sighed loudly and scratched the back of his head. “If you couldn't see, I'm kinda not exactly anywhere near the general type of 'tough guy' you'd see around, but I guess I can try to lend a hand? Though honestly, I'm more surprised that you had another brother at all, compared to the fact that you think I seem tough.”

Haruka laughed nervously. “Yeaaaahhhhhhhh well now you know! Us three Kokonose brothers, haha. He's a bit of a handful, but he means no harm! Or well he means some harm sometimes, but he's good inside. A little bit, maybe. Well I'm sure things will turn out fine, but there's no harm in having someone help keep him in check, right?”

Shintaro could practically feel the winks and nudges that exuded from Haruka's tone of voice. Haruka generally saw the better sides of things, so it was time to ask for a second opinion. “Soo Konoha, do you think everything will be fine too? Sounds like this third brother of yours is a bit of a handful.”

Konoha paused for a bit before saying, “He's mean.” He thought a bit longer and then added, “A bully.”

“Haha, he's not that bad, really.” Haruka flashed his winning smile once again. Though Shintaro knew better than to just believe him that easily. From what he could guess, this mysterious extra brother was some kind of asshole type, who probably has to transfer here due to trouble elsewhere. Like getting into fights trouble? Gang trouble? ...Murder? No, that'd get you in prison. Either way, agreeing to keep an eye on this guy probably wasn't the best thing he should've been making promises to do.

Deciding to try and forget about the whole thing, Shintaro bid the two adieu before continuing his search for yakisoba bread. Alas, lunch break ended quickly, and soon enough he was standing before Ayano empty handed.

“It's alright, really. It's not like I was really...that hungry...” Ayano turned away, a sad smile crossing her lips. Shintaro couldn't tell if he was being played or not, but he did feel guilty.

Takane made her way to the door, and paused upon opening it halfway. “I can't believe you Shintaro, breaking a girl's heart like that.” She said it without even turning around, and quickly disappeared into the hallway. Now Shintaro definitely felt like he was being played, but it wasn't like there was anything he could do about it now.

After classes were finally over, it was time for young Shintaro to make his way back to his homely lair. Or at least it would have been if it weren't for the local twins rearing their pretty heads again.

“Shintaro!” came a not-so-low whisper. Konoha and Haruka were at the door of his class, waving at him. When Ayano saw them, she grinned at Shintaro, probably trying to point out how popular he seemed to be with the Kokonose brothers.

“Hi? Why are you guys looking for me.”

“Well, I just have another favor is all!” Haruka looked quite apologetic, but as usual, Shintaro could not quite tell if this was some sort of facade or not. “I'm going with Takane to PetSmart, and you know how Konoha's banned from there, so I was wondering if you could make sure he gets home safe.”

Konoha looked a little embarrassed at having his past transgressions be brought up so casually, but it was his own fault for always accidentally walking out with live animals all over his person. Was it really all accident though? This was something Shintaro had never bothered to ask.

“Uhh, sure I guess. I mean it's not like your house is that far from mine, so...yeah.”

“Wow, thanks Shintaro! You're a life saver!" Haruka grabbed the poor nerd's hands and shook them softly. “I know Konoha will be safe if he's with you.”

“Uhhhhh okay.”

Before he knew it, Takane and Haruka were skipping off together all giddy, while Shintaro was now left standing with Konoha and Ayano. The scarfed girl then slid in front of them and said, “I have a dentist appointment today, so I guess I'll be leaving you two by yourselves. See you guys tomorrow!” She ran off with a smile, now leaving just Shintaro and Konoha.

The two began to make their way home, although it did seem a bit awkward, with Konoha being the silent type and Shintaro being the...awkward type. “So!” he blurted out, “how are you?”

“...Good.”

...That conversation ended quickly. Though it could still be salvaged. “Well, I'm good too. Do you know why Haruka's going to PetSmart with Takane? Are they going on a date or something?”

“Haruka wanted to persuade Takane to get a pet...though I don't think she'll get one.”

“Yeaah I can't imagine her raising anything. I mean, even raising a rabbit is hard! She doesn't really seem to have the delicacy to care for something so fragile.” His rabbit, Tono, flashed before his eyes. Maybe he should buy more feed this weekend. “Hmm, well anyways do you wanna like...stop by anywhere on the way home? Anything of interest?”

Konoha pondered for a bit before giving a flat 'no'. “Ice cream it is then. I was just thinking about how I wanted some,” replied Shintaro. Konoha seemed a little confused at the sudden ice cream, but he didn't say anything.

Soon enough, both boys had ice cream, and they were content. Or at least Shintaro liked to think they were both content. It was really hard trying to read Konoha, although he seemed to be in his own state of chipper most of the time. Konoha was licking cautiously at his ice cream, trying to keep it even on all sides. Shintaro sunk his teeth into his and immediately got brain freeze.

When they finally reached the Kokonose home, Shintaro turned to leave after saying goodbye. Alas a familiar tug on the sleeve stopped him. “Do you want to come inside for a while?” asked the cuter boy. “Since you came all this way, there's still some soda from last time.”

Shintaro quickly agreed to drain Konoha's home of its soda, and entered the premises briskly. It wasn't the first time he'd visited the place, but it still wasn't like he visited that often.

“I'll get the soda. You can sit here.” Konoha turned to point out the couch, but he found that Shintaro was already sitting on it. He blinked a couple times before heading into the kitchen.

Looking around, the house really was a rather nice place. The couch was long and comfortable, and it really seemed to be tempting Shintaro to lie down and take a nap on it. When he did fall back onto its soft cushions, he noted that the ceiling had a fan. It was a very clean looking fan, and the blades seemed to be made of a nice type of wood? Or maybe just a wood pattern on plastic, who knows.

Footsteps were heard from the kitchen, so Shintaro assumed it was almost time to indulge in some fine, sweet, bubbly delicious cola. Although if it was really the same cola as last time, then it'd probably not taste as fine as a fresh bottle would. His vision of fan was suddenly obscured however not by Konoha bringing in a glass of soda, but by something way too close to his eyes. Shintaro attempted to sit up, but someone decided just then to sit square on his stomach. Maybe this is what he gets for lying on other people's couches to examine their ceiling fans.

“Guess who?” asked a familiar, sweet voice.

Okay, there was no way it was Konoha, since the day Konoha pulled a stunt like this would be the day Shintaro preferred Pepsi to Coke. “Um...Ha-haruka?”

“Nope. Try again.”

“Uhh, are you by any chance the mystery third brother then?”

The pressure on his eyes disappeared, and Shintaro realized he was being sat on by a handsome black haired boy. He seemed to be frowning.

“Who told you about me? Damn it I wanted to surprise you.”

Looking closer, he was the split image of Konoha and Haruka, although with a different color scheme. Shintaro realized now that they were triplets all along. Not twins. He felt a little cheated, since neither of them ever corrected him before. Regardless of that, he had more pressing matters to deal with at the moment. “Could you please stop sitting on me? This isn't really a great first impression I'm getting here.”

The triplet boy grinned wide and blew into Shintaro's face, making him flinch. “No thanks. I need to figure out why my stupid brothers like you so much first.”

“Well I don't think you can figure that out by sitting on me!” Shintaro tried to get him off, but he wasn't really the fittest boy in school. In fact he was probably on the bottom rung when it came to physical strength. In return, the rude boy just laughed in his face.

“How cute! You don't got any muscle, do you.” The assailant began to run his hands under Shintaro's shirt, much to the victim's great dismay.

He let out a high squeal and blurted, “W-w-w-where are you t-touching?!??! I'm ticklish!”

“I'm just checking to see if you have any muscle. You don't gotta scream and cry so much, or perhaps is this...your first time?” He gave a rather lewd smirk and licked his lips, which made Shintaro beyond embarrassed.

“What the hell are you even trying to imply!? J-just, just get off me please.”

“No way no how, nerd.”

“Did you just--no you didn't. How do I even look like a nerd.”

“Have you ever even looked in the mirror before? Everything about you screams nerd, nerd.”

Before the conversation could get any stupider, someone grabbed the black haired pretty boy and threw him onto the cold hard ground where he belonged.

“Kuroha, if you keep sitting on Shintaro like that, he might break.” It was Konoha, having come to poor Shintaro's rescue.

“I'm not that fragile,” Shintaro tried to say. But it fell on deaf ears, as Konoha and his look alike entered into a face off.

Kuroha dived towards Konoha's waist, attempting to knock him down, but the latter swiftly side stepped and kneed him in the gut. Shintaro was slightly appalled to see Konoha so on the aggressive side.

“Gah! That's cheap, you dweeb! Take my tackle head on like a man!”

“Why.”

“Because that's what you're supposed to do.”

“Why.”

“Don't why me or I'll mix carrot juice into your cereal milk next time.”

“Why would you do that.” Konoha looked sad.

By this point, Shintaro was pretty fed up with how things were going and stepped between the two. “Okay cut it out you two, why the fricking hell are you guys arguing like 10-year-olds!?”

Konoha looked to his feet and quietly said, “I'm sorry.”

Kuroha on the other hand slid his cold-ass fingers under Shintaro's shirt again and pinched his nipples. Soon enough, a scream filled the house. Once again, Konoha was trying to throw Kuroha across the room, and Shintaro was trying his hardest to compose himself. That's when the door swung open and Haruka walked in.

“...What are you guys doing?” he asked, voice tinged more with curiosity than anything else.

Konoha looked straight at him and said, “Kuroha...he pinched Shintaro's nipples. I have to protect Shintaro.”

“Y-you didn't have to tell him exactly what happened, Konoha...” Shintaro's face was red and he looked a lot more tired than he did last time Haruka saw him.

“Kurohaaa? If you don't stop bullying Shintaro, I'm going to have to have mom cut your allowance.” Haruka crossed his arms and looked at the bully sternly. Or at least as sternly as an angel like him could manage.

“What the heck, my allowance is already cut down to 500 yen a week, even more and I'll literally die!”

“You only have an allowance at all thanks to me.” Haruka initiated his half pout half concerned mother look, and Kuroha was quickly defeated. The enemy finally relented his attack and retreated into the darkness that was upstairs.

When it was evident Kuroha was gone, Haruka went to Shintaro and held his hands in his own. “I'm sorry for how rude my brother was to you. I'm sure he's just jealous of our great friendship, since he doesn't really have any of his own friends. But when he starts schooling with us, I'm sure he'll change and become nicer!” At that, Shintaro could only give a grimace. If he was going to have to go to school everyday with a rude punk like that, he would just have to hope the kid would keep to himself rather than screw around with him anymore.

At least he could be sure Kuroha wouldn't be in the same class as him, since he was Konoha and Haruka's age. And he also couldn't help but wonder why the heck Kuroha's name made him sound like a black version of Konoha. He even dressed to fit the part, and it baffled the poor nerd.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Forgive me...all I wanted was for Kuroha and Shintaro to properly date, without any homicide or anything included. If I ever get past chapter 1, perhaps that dream can be achieved.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope there's no weird typos, though I don't trust myself. Anyways it seems the story is developing a little! Once again, I'm really winging this, so it's probably getting more ooc as I go.

The evening was quiet as usual. With his parents out most of the time, and Momo doing whatever the heck it is idol's do, Shintaro tended to be left in silence within the safe confines of his home. 

The sun was bright, and Shintaro was evidently disgruntled. He had forgotten to close the blinds last night, and was rewarded only with the glaring beams directed straight at him. True hell. Since Momo didn't seem to be banging on the door for him to get up, she must have gone to some idol thing. Dragging himself at the pace of a sloth, Shintaro eventually managed to feed himself, giving his body the energy to face another day of walking outside. 

By the time he got to school, he was already ready to go back home and tuck himself into bed. But this is how he felt every time he went to school, and it was just one of the things he had to tolerate. This morning, Ayano seemed very chipper, and flashed quite a few sparkling toothy grins. It seems she had gotten a cavity filled yesterday, and was feeling confident in her 'reborn' teeth, as she called it.

The day was so regular, Shintaro had almost completely forgotten about the rather peculiar events from the day before. Alas that bliss was short lived. 

“Well class, we'll be welcoming a new student from today on. Introduce yourself.” 

Standing there was the smug asshole who Shintaro was 100% sure should have been a second year, rather than a first year. He stood all cool-like, and wrote his name on the board. His handwriting was actually pretty nice looking, and written there was the name 'Kokonose Kuroha.'

“Alright, there's an empty seat in the back you can take.”

Kuroha casually walked towards the seat directly behind Shintaro's. For the first time all year, Shintaro was very sad that there was an empty seat behind him. As soon as Kuroha took his seat, Shintaro passed him a note. On it he had written, 'shouldn't you be a second year what're you doing here.'

In return, Kuroha pinched the back of his neck. Shintaro jumped in his seat, but luckily the teacher didn't seem to notice. Meanwhile, Ayano seemed a little confused on why there was a new Kokonose in their class. Shintaro sent her some exaggerated movements, trying to tell her 'I'll tell you later.' She didn't seem to get it though, and eventually whispered, “Tell me about it later.”

When break finally came around, Kuroha left the room immediately, much to Shintaro's relief. He then proceeded to tell Ayano about the whole situation. 

She clapped her hands together and seemed really giddy to know there were actually three Kokonoses. “Wow! We should get them to line up and compare them hehe.” Shintaro didn't very much agree with this idea, but judging from what he had seen, it probably wasn't even possible to get them all to stay in one spot with each other that long.

The door slid open and Haruka strolled in, Takane in tow. “Hi, Shintaro! Have you been keeping an eye on him like you promised?”

“Uh, no, actually. He kinda left somewhere.”

Haruka seemed a little disappointed, but not enough to really get him down. “Well if you spot him, try to keep him out of trouble, okay?” 

“Shouldn't that be your job as the brother?”

“He doesn't really look up to me that much, so he's always running off when I try to keep him close by! But I think maybe with you, he'd stay put.”

“And why would you think that..,” Shintaro at this point was pretty sure Haruka just didn't want to do it, but that would be a bit out of character for such a pure-hearted boy like him. Maybe there really was a reason why he thought a regular guy like Shintaro would be better up for keeping that ass in check?

“Well..,” Haruka seemed a bit lost for words. He twiddled his fingers together a bit before continuing, “Shintaro, actually you seem a lot like the type he'd like to bully...so I thought maybe if he got attached to you he wouldn't cause as much trouble elsewhere.”

At that Shintaro had to stand up and fling his arms open, “Wait, so you're basically using me like a human scape goat!? I don't wanna be like a pig getting thrown into a slaughter house, thank you very much. I never thought you to be so heartless, Haruka.”

“Eehh, no I don't mean any offense! I mean, Kuroha rarely hurts other people. Seriously, that is. Unless if they're the type of person he doesn't like, which I'm pretty sure you aren't! So you should be fine. Probably.”

“Probably.” Probably just wasn't enough to cut it. “Sorry, but the promise is off. I don't wanna babysit your pinch-crazy brother. Though honestly, I didn't think I was cut out for it the moment I first ran into him.”

Haruka bowed his head apologetically. Takane seemed upset at Shintaro's refusal, but Haruka kept her at bay. “Well I understand if you don't want to do it. And I won't hold it against you. Just, if you run into him, don't be too mean to him okay?" He left the room with that angelic smile, as if Shintaro was the one who wronged him, rather than Haruka being the one who attempted to use him as a sort of toy mouse to distract the stupid Kuroha cat.

A long sigh was breathed out, and all Ayano seemed to be doing was laughing. “Wow Shintaro, seems like you've gotten yourself into a bit of a pinch!”

“Yeah, whatever. I didn't ask for any of this.” He buried his face into the wood of his desk, and attempted to fuse into it. 

“Y'know, you're pretty popular with the Kokonose brothers, huh. They all like you, Shintaro! I'd say you're more lucky than unfortunate, even if you have the new kid on your tail.”

All he could do was sigh more loudly. “He's not 'on my tail', I just happened to meet him yesterday, and he probably thinks I'm just another nerd to push around.”

Ayano giggled, “Doesn't that mean the same thing? Well whatever the case, he didn't seem like an especially bad boy to me.”

“You must be an awful judge of character then.” The lazy and troubled boy continued and failed to phase into the desk. Ayano's take on the situation was also way too light for his liking. It would be nice if someone would understand and just protect him from all the stranger things in life.

Before drifting into deep thought, someone tapped Shintaro on the shoulder. Repeatedly. Until he finally turned with a grumbled, “What.”

Standing behind him was Konoha. “I wanted to apologize for the trouble yesterday...so I got you this.” He handed Shintaro what seemed to be...a can of soda.

“Wow, thanks Konoha! This makes me feel like you think I only like soda, but still I don't blame you for anything that happened yesterday. And I do like soda, so... yeah, thanks.” He quickly opened the can and began drinking it. However, it turned out to be not Coke, but...Fanta? Grape Fanta? Well Fanta wasn't too bad, so it didn't really make too much of a difference.

Konoha seemed to be shifting where he stood, waiting for Shintaro to say something. But what could he possible want? “So do you need something?”

“Haruka and Takane went somewhere, so...I am by myself.” He seemed troubled. He seemed...lonely. Such a thing could only be remedied by immediate bonding. Which was something Shintaro just didn't really provide very often, but he could always try.

“Well, you can spend break with Ayano and me if you want.” 

Konoha's face seemed to light up, even though his expression was still relatively blank. He then stood between Ayano and Shintaro, looking at them expectantly.

Pondering for a bit, Shintaro finally thought up something to talk about. “Sooo Konoha. Why's Kuroha in my grade? Just a little curious.”

“He flunked 5th grade,” Konoha stated point blank.

Shintaro was mid sip when he shot some Fanta out of his nose. “F-Fifth grade!? Wow is he like a dumbass or something!?” He was spluttering a bit, and wiped his face with his sleeve.

“That's unsanitary, Shintaro! Use a napkin.” Ayano sounded concerned, but she was laughing too.

“He went missing during that time and missed too many classes.”

“What! A dumbass AND a truant wow this kid needs to be put on a leash.”

“I'm sure he must have had his reasons, right? Oh, but what if it was a kidnapping!” Ayano covered her mouth with a shocked look on her face. 

Konoha shook his head. “I don't know his reasons, and I don't think it was a kidnapping. He was the same as usual when he came back.”

Someone then grabbed Konoha from behind and lifted him up, placing him gently by the door. Of course this mysterious stranger was Kuroha. “Stop talking about me behind my back. Anyways this isn't your class, Konoha. Go away.”

“But, they're my friends.” Konoha did the sad thing again, and Shintaro could have sworn he was pouting a bit.

“Hey hey hey, whoa don't be mean to Konoha. He belongs in that space between me and Ayano, not you!” Shintaro came up and stood between the two, giving Kuroha the meanest look he could muster. Which did not really look that intimidating, but it was the thought that counted.

Kuroha just gave a typical mean guy sneer, “Who said I even wanted to stand there? Though of course that space belongs to me. I'm part of this class so all the space should be free for me to stand in right? But this guy's the one who's not even in this grade.”

Konoha then pulled Shintaro back and took up the place between Shintaro and Kuroha. “Please don't fight because me.”

Suddenly Shintaro was feeling a little bashful. “W-well I'm just trying to uphold local justice yeah? And we're friends, so yeah.” 

At that, Konoha gave him a kind of smile. And was his cheeks getting a little pink? It was relieving to know Shintaro wasn't the only one feeling a bit embarrassed by their sheer friendship.

“God you guys are so into each other it's making me sick. First Konoha's a friendless loser, and now he's hooked up with a twig? How years change a man.”

“W-who said we're hooked up! I'll—I'll pinch your fucking nose if you keep talking smack.” 

Konoha put stretched his arm out in front of Shintaro. “You don't have to raise your hand, Shintaro. I'll pinch his nose instead.”

Kuroha crossed his arms and raised his head to look down on them. “Is that a challenge? You think you can pinch my nose before I can pinch yours?”

In return, he only got a fierce look of determination from the cuter triplet. 

Two look alikes got into fighting position, staring each other down. Then came a flash as their hands shot towards each others' noses. While Konoha aimed straight for his opponent's nose, the other moved to block his out reaching arm with his right hand. He then pulled Konoha around and close to his body, so he could wrap his left harm around to pinch his nose from behind. Konoha swung his head back and hit Kuroha in the face, knocking the other boy onto the floor. 

As he turned to prepare for his final assault, Kuroha struggled to get himself back up. He was too slow, however, as Konoha dove onto him to continue the attack. The two struggled for a bit, with mostly Kuroha trying to stop Konoha's pinches. It eventually ended with Kuroha's defeat, fingers gripped tightly onto his nose. He tried to throw off the other boy, but also attempted to grab his nose too like the sore loser hew as. It sadly ended with a crack resounding throughout the classroom.

The two boys parted from each other, and Kuroha's nose was evidently bleeding. Shintaro came up and raised Konoha's arm. “I think we know who won this match. Congratulations, Konoha. I knew I could believe in you. Though you didn't have to break it. The goal was to pinch.” Konoha seemed a bit bewildered, but eventually he nodded in recognition of his victory. It was not a happy victory however, as he did not mean to cause Kuroha real harm and felt a bit guilty now.

“Don't you think this fight went a little too far though? I mean, blood was shed.” Ayano seemed slightly concerned, but she was still smiling. Her words made Konoha feel a bit more guilty.

Kuroha was attempting to wipe the blood off, but it just kept running. Due to that, his voice was slightly nasally. “Whatever, it was a fair game I guess. You win this time Konoha, but next time, your nose is mine.” One hand over his nose, and the other pointing straight at the victor.

“I'm hoping there won't be a next time.” Everyone stopped as they turned to see the teacher staring at them. Shintaro's eyes widened and he jumped back. Konoha just kind of slunk back in Shintaro's direction. By this point, Shintaro noticed a bit of a crowd had begun to surround the class. “I don't know what you kids were up to, but I see a bloody nose here. Someone's going to be in trouble.”

“N-no you got it wrong! Uh they were just having a friendly duel of patty cake, but Konoha missed and accidentally slammed his hand into Kuroha's face. That's all. Pure accident.” Shintaro waved his arms around, evidently flustered. Kuroha just kind of gave a disgusted look that seemed to scream 'seriously?'

“Is this true, Kokonose Kuroha?” The teacher looked straight at Kuroha. The boy begrudgingly nodded, as another drop of blood slipped and hit the floor. 

The teacher looked at Shintaro and sternly said, “Kisaragi, take him to the nurse's office. I'll let Kokonose Konoha off the hook this time, since this will clearly never happen again, right?” Everyone nodded. The teacher smiled before dispersing the crowd and telling everyone that classes would start again soon.

And so it was that Shintaro had to accompany Kuroha to the nurse's office. It was a silent walk, and they were not looking at each other at all. Shintaro decided to break the awkward air with the first thing that came into his mind. “So it's zero to two now, huh.”

Kuroha smacked him in the head. He then said “Ah, whoops. Wrong hand,” much to Shintaro's dismay. As Shintaro grabbed at where he was hit, he was very unhappy to feel something wet there. The look he gave Kuroha was one that seemed like he was about to puke. Kuroha just gave him a sort of 'serves you right' kind of look.

“What did I ever even do to you! You don't even know me! I don't even know you! Do you even know my name.”

“I'm not stupid y'know. You're Shintaro, and you're the guy who's super buddy buddy with my brothers.”

“What, are you jealous or something?”

Kuroha paused at that, and Shintaro thought he was about to receive another smack to the head. However all he got was a quick, “Maybe a little.” Could it be this guy was actually a big softy!? That train of thought ended when Kuroha leaned over and put his arm around Shintaro's shoulder. “I can pay those two back though if I just make you my buddy bud instead. I mean, you're really not so bad, Shintaro. I can see why they like you so much.”

Kuroha was talking way too close to Shintaro's face, to the point where he could feel the tickle of breathe on his ear. Shintaro shoved him away as fast as he could. “G-get your bloody hands off me!! I don't want any stains on my uniform!”

As expected, Kuroha did not relent that easily. He pinched Shintaro's nose lightly, leaving some blood there. Shintaro was utterly disgusted. But that disgust began to change to nervousness as he saw the grin that was beaming on Kuroha's face. And it wasn't the nice kind of beaming grin. More sinister if anything.

When they finally got to the nurse's office, Shintaro turned to go back to class. He was gripped by the wrist (by Kuroha's clean hand) and pulled back into the room. “No you don't,”laughed the evil-doer, “You're my buddy now, so stick around. If you don't I'll be sad!”

“If you'll be sad, that only gives me more incentive to leave. And you're getting treated by the nurse. You can't keep gripping my wrist like that forever!” Shintaro thought he was being pretty clever here, but he was sadly mistaken. 

The nurse easily treated Kuroha while he was still keeping a steady grip on Shintaro's wrist. It seemed she couldn't care less about the current situation, and was just focused on doing her job. All she did was tell Kuroha to 'stay still' and to 'leave the flirting for later.' The biggest issue here however, was how Shintaro could not reach the sink from here, and so was stuck with blood on his hair and face.

After the treatment was done, Kuroha had a large bandage covering his nose. It looked stupid, and Shintaro did not hesitate to tell him that. Kuroha was unfazed by the remark.

“I need to get the blood off me, so please let go of my hand.” 

“No.”

Kuroha's stupid smile was really starting to piss Shintaro off. “I can't just waltz back to class with friggin' blood in my hair! And on my face too! It's just gross, man. You still got some blood on you too, right? Can't you understand?”

“I already licked it off while I was getting treated, see?" He waves his 'clean' hand, though if it was only cleaned with saliva it was still unclean to Shintaro. "And you don't necessarily have to waltz back into class, if you waltz out with me. Ditch class is what I mean.”

“We can't just ditch class, jackass. I think you've already flunked your fill and shouldn't do it another year.”

“Aww, so you're worried about me?”

“No, I'm not.”

The asshole laughed and finally said, “Okay fine, we'll go back. This should be fine, right?” He leaned in and sucked the blood right off Shintaro's nose. It was utterly disgusting, and the shorter boy let his assailant know that by letting out a weird high pitched noise.

“W-w-w-what are you d-doing!! Stop that!” He was flushed in the face, and looked as if he had just witnessed some sort of felony.

“I'm just getting the blood off, like you wanted.” As Kuroha grabbed Shintaro by the hair, the other boy flailed very intensely.

“Y-you can't lick there too! I haven't washed my hair in a while!” The grip on his head loosened at that.

“So you do care about me! That's nice to know. I guess I can use my hands then.” Shintaro was very much not amused as Kuroha licked his fingers and started directing them at his head. It was not a very nice experience at all, to have another boy pulling at his hair with saliva-coated fingers. If anything, it was humiliating. And embarrassing. And just generally terrible. 

Having been frozen in shock, Kuroha easily accomplished the task and gave another winning smile. “There! All nice and clean. Time to go back to class, right?” 

As Kuroha led him back by the hand, Shintaro was just thinking about how he had never felt more violated in his life until today. It was proving difficult to erase the memory of tongue on his nose.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't really know what I'm doing, so hopefully no one turns out too OOC!

After school had become a new kind of ordeal ever since Kuroha decided to become involved. Immediately after class let out, he tapped on Shintaro's shoulder and gave him a smile that just reeked of ill intentions. “Wanna hang out?” he asked.

“Nooo thaaanks.”

“Why not.” He pulled a pout. It looked awful.

“'Cause you're like...an asshole??” Shintaro narrowed his eyes in a very exaggerated fashion.

Kuroha furrowed his brow. He then returned an equally exaggerated narrowing of the eyes. “Me? An asshole? Well if you wanna think of it that way, suit yourself. You'll be missing out on some very much quality time hanging with the coolest kid in town.”

Shintaro swiftly retorted, “Says the kid who flunked 5th grade,” before immediately breaking into a fit of fake coughs. At that Kuroha came to decide it was his time to retreat, although he didn't seem to fazed by the remark.

After that ordeal was done with, Shintaro made for the doors as he had no intention of being dragged down by friends again. He had games to play at home and it was serious business. As soon as he got to the main entrance, Konoha came out from behind the shoe boxes and stood in his path. 

He swung his arms out wide and said in a moderate tone, “Shintaro, will you let me see Tono.”

“Man, I just let you see Tono like a week ago. Isn't that enough bunny for you.”

“No.” Konoha seemed utterly distraught. His desire to touch fluffy animals was definitely something that needed to be fixed, seeing as how it had even gotten him into trouble before. 

In the end, the two began heading to Shintaro's home together. As walks with Konoha tended to be, it was quite awkward and very much silent. It took Shintaro some energy to come up with a nice conversation topic. “So uh, what kind of fur do you like best.”

“Hmm, Tono's fur is very nice...very groomed...,” Konoha seemed to be in deep thought. Shintaro was glad someone appreciated his grooming skills though. If Tono wasn't tidy, it really hurt his conscious.

“Any fur color preferences?”

“White...is nice. Though brown fur is also nice...though grey fur is also very nice...,” 

“Okay okay I get it you don't have much preference there.”

Talking to Konoha could be so hard sometimes, but it was clearly evident the boy meant no harm. And he was also rather cute and nice and quiet and friendly and in fact at times reminded Shintaro of Tono, although he never really wanted to associate the two.

Sadly, the association went too far, and Shintaro found himself placing his palm firmly on Konoha's head. Konoha was evidently confused by the action. “Is there something there?” he asked, a confuddled expression on his face. Shintaro was planning to cease his actions immediately, but he just couldn't do it. Konoha's hair was almost as soft as Tono's—no, it was seriously soft with a texture completely unlike that of a nice coat of fur. His conditioner must be expensive, even if he does not look like the high maintenance type at all.

A good 3 minutes and 42 seconds passed of Shintaro gently stroking Konoha's hair before Shintaro finally found the will to rip his hand free. Konoha was still confused, though he was also distraught at how the petting stopped. Was he also some kind of rabbit or something.

“I am sorry,” Shintaro said steadily. “I didn't mean to uh, pet your head. You aren't a rabbit, you are my friend.”

“It's okay. It was...nice.” Konoha smiled. It dealt damage to Shintaro, and he had no idea what to say in return. Within Shintaro's cold heart, he almost thought to blame the incident on Konoha for having such sleek looking white hair in the first place. I mean who even has white hair that's like anime business right there.

Either way, they finally arrived at Shintaro's lovely abode, only to be greeted by the completely undesirable noise that was company. 

That company turned out to be Momo's friends, who she all brought along for some reason. Shintaro really did not understand how Momo's thought processes worked most of the time, and he really had no clue why she'd want to bring her friends to a bland house like this. Either way, they were all very giddy to spot the older brother of their good idol friend.

“Aah, big bro~ Hello~!” Some pretentious looking blonde jumped up to greet him. The other kids just kinda waved at him at a good distance of 5 feet or more. Just as Shintaro liked it.

“Aren't you going to say hello to my friends, you dumb nerd?” Momo did that pout thing that Shintaro was pretty sure only girls on TV ever did. 

“Why should I.”

Momo was about to raise a fuss, but she then spotted good Konoha. Konoha tended to stop most altercations just by existing. “Oh oh oh, Konoha! Hello! How are you!” She quickly became upbeat again and totally overwhelmed the adorable boy within seconds.

“Um, hello. It's nice to see you again,” he managed to sputter out. Momo was definitely getting a little close for comfort though.

While she was rather outgoing, she wasn't blind, so she backed off when Konoha showed signs of discomfort. At being able to great the prettier of the Kokonose brothers (as she seemed to have dubbed him), she allowed Shintaro to return to his room in peace.

Upon arrival, Shintaro swiftly led Konoha to where Tono was. As usual, Tono was resting in a nice moderately sized cage that sat along the wall by the door. Tono was magnificent as always, glistening in the light from the window, coat sparkling with every movement. Konoha was captivate.

Upon release, Tono hopped tentatively around Konoha before being cautiously petted by him. Konoha was quite careful when dealing with small animals, as he was afraid of hurting them. While a boy of a gentle disposition, he proved to have quite the muscle strength hiding in those skinny arms. Shintaro didn't get it either.

“Well when you're done molesting my rabbit, you can go home I guess. Though I don't want you getting lost, so maybe I should call Haruka?” Since it was a bit of a habit, Shintaro had already situated himself at his computer. He spun around in his chair a bit while keeping his eyes on the fluffy Kokonose who was so elegantly fluffing his fluffy bunny.

“I can get home fine by myself.” 

“Hmm, well if you say so.” Konoha had gotten lost before, so Shintaro was not entirely sure if he should really trust him to get home safely. “Anywaays, you really like Tono, don't you.”

Konoha continued his intense petting. “Can I pick him up?” 

“Sure, go ahead.” Shintaro wasn't even using his computer. He was just staring at Konoha touch his rabbit. It was definitely a productive afternoon.

Alas, Konoha seemed to have trouble picking up Tono, and Tono could sense his anxiousness. Soon, Konoha was empty handed, while Tono was still on the floor. He was distraught.

“Uhh, you want me to help?

Konoha slightly nodded in response. So Shintaro ended up having to pick up Tono himself, and then plop the fluffy guy into Konoha's arms. The troubled look quickly became...untroubled. Shintaro could guess Konoha was rather happy though.

“Can I touch him too?”

Shintaro turned to see yet another individual standing right next to them. He was the spitting image of Konoha, but with black hair rather than fluffy pure white. Evidently this was someone that Shintaro did not only not expect, but did not recall inviting into his house. 

“What the fuck are you doing in my house.”

“Well, the front door was open. And the people downstairs seemed rather welcoming enough. They told me I'd find you up here.”

“But why. _Why._ ”

“Why not.”

A migraine was definitely gonna rear itself at the rate this conversation was going. Kuroha was an awful conversationalist as usual, and Shintaro was gonna feel sick of this fiend defiled Tono with his dirty hands.

That thought was thought a bit too late however, as Tono was already at the mercy of Kuroha's touch. Konoha was evidently troubled at the loss of bunny from his own hands.

Kuroha held Tono gently and put his fur. He also rubbed at his head and ran his fingers along those long bunny ears. “This is my first time touching a real rabbit! It's quite interesting.”

Shintaro could've sworn he saw a cry for help gleam in Tono's helpless eyes (though assuredly that was not the case at the moment). “Unhand Tono, you punk!”

“I'm just petting him, what's the big deal? See, even Tono's happy to be in my arms.” 

Much to Shintaro's chagrin, Tono was not shaking or trying to make any escape, so perhaps he really was comfortable. There really weren't any cries for help after all.

An awkward silence passed as Kuroha totally invaded Tono's personal space. The petting had gone too far, and Shintaro started feeling uncomfortable in his bunny's place. “When are you going to unhand him anyways. Tono is getting tired of your grubby mitts!”

“My 'mitts' are very nice and soft to the touch, thank you very much. Not grubby at all. Wanna feel?”

“No.” Shintaro turned to Konoha for assistance, but Konoha was just eying Tono as usual. “Konoha, weren't you and Kuroha fighting? I mean you broke his nose today?” Shintaro decided to leave 'will you break his nose again and get him out of my house' out since it didn't really seem right at the time.

“That was just an accident. We play fight all the time...I didn't mean to break anything.” Again, Konoha became troubled. Guilt struck Shintaro slightly, but not enough to really do anything.

“Play fighting you say. Is that what siblings do when they're close?” Shintaro wouldn't know, since he and Momo were very far apart in both interests and social standing.

“It's more like dueling over the last popsicle or TV channel rights and shit like that.” The way Kuroha said it, Shintaro almost imagined them being a normal for a second. But they couldn't be normal, seeing as how friggin' weird Kuroha was. No one could have a normal family if they had a 5th grade flunkee delinquent-type psycho blood-licker boy in the house. Though all that may have just been Shintaro's own personal bias.

Tono was eventually returned to his cage, and Shintaro wanted the two Kokonoses out of the house. Both were reluctant to comply, however. 

Konoha quietly just stood where he was, and stared at Shintaro. He mumbled, “There's still more I want to do here...” Shintaro had no clue what the kid would want to possibly do besides put Tono, but what was said was said.

Kuroha meanwhile just stared at Konoha and blurted out, “I can't just let my bro have all this fun at some guy's place while I'm supposed to be at home doing jack.” 

Shintaro assumed that that was Kuroha's real reason for intruding, and perhaps even his real reason for bugging him so much. Maybe he was just jealous of how tight Konoha was with him? Though Shintaro never thought he and Konoha were really that tight, though they did communicate time to time. And go home together sometimes, and at times he'd treat Konoha to ice cream. Other times they would pet Tono together, and on some other occasions they'd actually play a game or something together. Remembering all these things, it was hard to really say they weren't tight. The tightness...it was real. And it was tight. No wonder Kuroha was jealous.

Kuroha pointed straight at Konoha and declared, “I challenge you to another duel, Konoha. This time we should do something a little more intense than nose pitching. Winner gets custody of Shintaro.”

Konoha's expression turned serious, and he replied, “...Shintaro doesn't belong to either of us. You can't just do that.”

If this was some kind of shoujo, Shintaro was sure his heart would throb right then. But this was stone cold reality, and all he knew was that these two were gonna take this out of hand unless if he could stop it somehow. Or at least, his mind thought all these things through, but before he knew it his mouth was already saying, “What the heck's your deal Kuroha!? Coming into my house and then making me the prize for your own stupid competitions? Just get out of here, you don't belong!”

Sadly, he went completely ignored. Kuroha continued, “Whoever makes Shintaro blush first wins. If you win, you can hug or touch him or whatever as long as you like without any interruptions! If you lose however, you have to go home.”

“I still haven't given either of you permission to use me like this!? Konoha, stop your stupid brother!” 

Even more sadly, Konoha seemed quite enticed by the sound of the prize. His eyes gleamed with a new-found resolve. “Kuroha, your way ends here,” He declared, fully initiating battle mode. This was bad.

“I see you're eager to battle! Well first I'll go grab a judge.” Kuroha leaped out of the room, and Shintaro was left very much troubled by the new turn of events. Konoha continued to stand resolute.

Within seconds, Kuroha returned with one of Momo's friends in tow. The friend in question was a rather friendly looking boy. He bowed a little and said, “Hello, Momo's brother. Momo's friends. I'm Seto Kousuke and I'll be happy to be judge for your duel.”

'How proper,' Shintaro thought to himself. He was surprised that Momo could make friends who didn't seem as erratic as she tended to be at times.

“Okay, time to explain the rules,” started Kuroha, “So the goal here is to embarrass Shintaro and get some red on his gaunt zombie face. We can take turns, and if we both get him on the same turn it'll be a tie. Otherwise, winner gets the prize! If it's a tie, I guess Shintaro will get to go unmolested for today.”

Konoha nodded. Shintaro started grimacing. “Someone save me from this nightmare,” he started to mutter. That Seto kid was just kinda grinning in the corner, watching this whole thing. 

The two Kokonoses flipped a coin to decide who'd go first. It was Kuroha. He smiled a disgustingly evil looking smirk before turning to look Shintaro straight in the eyes. “Are you ready?”

“No. No, honestly, I'm not and I'll never be. Just please stop this and get out of my ho—wah,” Shintaro was cut off by being grabbed by the arm and pulled into Kuroha's sweet, loveless embrace. Before he could make vocal protests, he soon found one of Kuroha's hands gently cupping his face. Kuroha then raised Shintaro's chin to look him straight in the eyes, and his other hand was pulling him in tight at the waist. “W-what the fuck are you doing!” Things were not looking good for Shintaro.

It was especially awful when a breathy whisper was breathed into his ear. “Y'know, ever since I first saw you, I couldn't stop thinking about how jealous I was about how Haruka and Konoha monopolize you.” It tickled a lot, and while Shintaro did not believe a word coming out of this guy's filthy mouth, the whole ordeal did raise his body temperature by quite a bit. “From here on out, the only one who will have you is me,” Kuroha whispered, before planting his lips on Shintaro's.

Shintaro did not know what to think. In fact, for once he wasn't thinking anything at all. But only for a few seconds, before he came to the realization that his first kiss was with a delinquent boy of all things. He also soon realized that he was blushing hard. 

“Can you beat that, Konoha?” The look Kuroha was giving everyone in the room at that moment was one full of such haughty smug pride that Shintaro decided to stab him in the face if the ass really did end up winning.

“Look, you smug asshole, you can't just go around k-k-kissing people! Especially other guys! And especially guys you just met yesterday! Are you gay!? Are you a homosexual!? I'll report you for sexual harassment!” 

“Aww is Shintaro embarrassed~ If you want another kiss I'd happily give you one~” Kuroha did a disgusting attempt at looking cute. Shintaro felt like he was going to hurl. 

“Settle down guys, we should continue the competition!” The person who interrupted was Seto, who was completely unfazed by everything that just happened. “Next is Konoha's turn!”

Konoha looked straight at Shintaro, brimming with confidence. Or at least, Shintaro assumed he must be confident if he was just staring so steadily. Kuroha was just kinda laughing to himself like the loser scum he was, so sure he'd win. Though with what Shintaro knew of Konoha, he couldn't really say he thought this would end in the nicer boy's victory. Meanwhile Seto just continued grinning where he stood. Shintaro took back his opinion of Seto being a nice kid.

Konoha walked straight up to Shintaro before taking his hands in his own. He squeezed at Shintaro's hands gently and looked into his eyes. “There's something I want to tell you, Shintaro...”

“W-what is it.” This situation felt a lot more awkward than anything else. But at least Shintaro did not feel like he was in danger, as he did when Kuroha was invading his personal space.

Konoha proceeded to kiss Shintaro's knuckles. “When I'm with you, Shintaro...I feel a lot warmer. Than when with other people.” His gaze returned to being locked with Shintaro's, and it was embarrassing. Shintaro was embarrassed. He felt he had been more embarrassed today than he had in his entire life up to this point.

He was also feeling upset with how Kuroha and Konoha were managing to make his heart race like this. While Konoha's actions were a lot more gentle compared to Kuroha's sexual harassment, this whole slow drawn out hand kissing was so embarrassing Shintaro wanted to die. So it successfully resulted in his cheeks getting colored a bit.

He didn't expect Konoha's final smash though. “This feeling I have for you...it's love. I love you, Shintaro. Will you become part of my family?” 

Shintaro was so shocked he couldn't even say anything. His first thought to reject the boy, but flashes of them enjoying a pleasant married life suddenly were implanted in his head, and they were not as distasteful as he intended them to be. His second thought would be to just jump out his window, but from this height he might get himself seriously hurt. What he did end up doing was sputtering out, “I'm too young for marriage!” He then backed up and tripped onto his bed.

“Hmm, this is a really close call. Both contestants have made him blush, so this may have to end as a tie!

When Shintaro regained his composure, he noticed that Konoha was still looking at him earnestly, while Kuroha seemed to be scowling. First order of business however was to address the white haired boy about what just happened. “Um, Konoha, that was just a fake confession right? Just trying to get me embarrassed, which you did do.”

Konoha seemed to be pondering a bit, before he finally said, “Well, I quoted what they said in this manga Takane gave me.” 

Oh. Okay. Shintaro was about to feel relieved, before he noticed he was also a little upset that he had gotten a fake confession. Even if it was from his friend. And a guy friend at that.

“But, I really do like you Shintaro. If you joined my family I'd be happy.”

Okay never mind, Shintaro now thought that he should have been purely relieved earlier at this new direction the conversation had taken. “Uhh by like, do you mean like-like? Or just regular like?”

“Um, I feel happy when we are together. And if you were always there it would be nice.”

“Okaay break it up you lovebirds.” Kuroha came up right between the two, and gave them looks of disgust. “If you keep flirting I might choke on this lovey-dovey air and die.”

“Then die,” Shintaro said.

Kuroha just gave him a rather upset looking glance before turning to Seto. “So, Judge, what do you say should happen in the events of a tie?”

“Hmm, what about you just both keep him? He can be like a shared boyfriend!”

“Hell no!” yelled Shintaro, “I'm not gonna be anyone's boyfriend you hear!?”

“Oh, you wound me Shintaro!” Kuroha played a sad look.

“You...don't want to be with me?” Konoha had a real sad look.

“Uh, ok um well I still am your friend, Konoha! Just not a...boyfriend. I don't think I'm ready for that kind of commitment to our relationship. And Kuroha, we just met yesterday so stop screwing around! Obviously you don't like me that way, so don't even keep pretending to!”

Konoha seemed slightly appeased, though perhaps he really did want to become Shintaro's boyfriend. Meanwhile Kuroha was upset. 

“Well yeah, we just met, but...well so what? ” Kuroha walked over to Shintaro's bed and climbed onto it so that he could look down on everyone from a higher vantage point. He then continued, “Even if you think I'm just an asshole Konoha lookalike, ever since we first met I've thought your looks weren't half-bad! Even those stupid panda bags that make you look like you only get 4 hours of sleep every night, I don't want to find them cute but they fucking are!” He pointed down at Shintaro with the most serious expression ever. “ So what if we just met, it doesn't matter. I think your sarcastic dumbass personality is pretty fun, even though everything I've heard from Haruka made me think I'd find you annoying. And y'know what? You are annoying! You're annoying the crap out of me with how you've made me fall for you at first sight!”

Shintaro was gonna just keel over right there from how impossible and embarrassing the world had suddenly become. “What,” was all he managed to say. 

“Don't 'what' me, I want to go out with you.”

“But, I want to go out with him too.” Konoha grabbed Kuroha's legs and pulled them off the bed. Kuroha hit the floor with a loud 'thump.'

“I can't just go out with two guys all of a sudden, much less twins! And I haven't even decided to become gay or anything, so why is this happening!?” Shintaro stepped over Kuroha and moved away from the two.

“Love knows no boundaries, and being gay isn't a choice. It just comes to you, like love does.” Seto nodded sagely, as if he just said something meaningful. 

“No one asked you for your opinion here. Just go back to playing with Momo or something!”

Momo then slipped into the room with a wide eyed look on her face. “Bro...I heard you're gay now...”

“Wait when the heck, I mean, why the heck are you here! Aren't you and your friends all downstairs?”

“Uh well there were some loud noises, and you guys _did_ kidnap Seto, so I just came up to see how things were going! And...I'm happy for you bro. I never thought that someone like you would ever get a date. And not just one, but two! Wow, I'm even impressed!”

Shintaro attempted to shove Momo out of the room, but she was too agile for him. He sighed and said, “It's not even set in stone yet. I never said yes!”

An arm draped over his shoulders, and he turned to see Kuroha staring straight at him. “Won't you though?” he whispered.

Someone nudged at his side, and he turned the other way to find Konoha leaning against him. “On TV, when people are dating, they're always so close...I want to be close with you too Shintaro.”

Shintaro was stuck between a rock and a hard place. Or to be more accurate, a Kokonose and another Kokonose. Momo seemed surprised by how forward the two Kokonoses were, but soon enough she was pulling Seto out of the room, saying, “Well I'll leave you lovers be. Just, don't do anything too weird okay? I'm still in the house!”

The door shut. And Shintaro was still stuck with two boys wrapping their arms around him. This was definitely the most uncomfortably embarrassing day of his life, and he wasn't even sure if he was really unhappy or not about it. Mostly, he was confused.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll check through this for errors later, since I've had a power outage and my laptops gonna die! Haha I have no idea where this story is going, and I'm really just winging it, so I'm glad if anyone's enjoying it!


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shintaro's life gets more awkward.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I added a chapter...it's a miracle.. haha man so I was putting off writing more since after last chap I had like finals and stuff? And before I knew it a month of summer vacation has already passed... Also within the last update I watched the whole anime so...maybe everyone will be more in character? Just kidding Kuroha is still completely tsundere instead of being a batshit crazy psychopath.

It was a new day, and Shintaro struggled to try and close the blinds without having to leave his bed. He really didn't want to go to school today, especially after everything that had happened the day before. The whole event was a disaster, and it took more than a bit of work to get the Kokonoses out of his house. Also, it didn't help that Momo was never going to let him live this down. 

However, attendance was important after all, and if he just randomly ditched school he had a feeling at least one Kokonose would come to check on him. “Might as well face the danger head on..,” he grumbled to himself.

He began his journey to school with only a granola bar for breakfast, and tried to force his legs forward. 

There were other students along the roads, likely also going to school. Shintaro prayed inside that he would not run into anyone he recognized. Of course, whenever he wanted something to go one way, it wouldn't go that way.

“Shintaro! Good morning!” The chipper voice belonged to one Kokonose Haruka. He was walking with Konoha.

“Uh, g'morning you guys...ha ha.” It was awkward for Shintaro. He didn't really want to see any Kokonose at the moment. Or ever again even. It was embarrassing.

“I heard you're dating my brothers, Shintaro! Congratulations! Not just one date, but two! I can't say I'm not, um, impressed.” 

Shintaro flinched at the words and fidgeted rather violently. “W-what!! Nooo no no no you got that wrong! I am not dating anyone here! I am single. I am straight as an arrow, and I am single! More single than a single pair of pants, or a single pack of toothpaste, I don't know. I am definitely not in a combo, and I am most definitely definitely not involved in any triple pack! If I had to date anyone anyways, it would not be Konoha and especially not Kuroha! I'd rather date someone like Aya...no...or something.” He coughed a bit before giving Haruka the fiercest look he could muster.

Haruka chuckled in return. “Shintaro, isn't that just denial? And everyone knows denial is the first step of true love! I hear the more passionate the denial, the more passionate the love will become. Or at least, that's what I heard on TV the other day.”

“What. Who even says that!? That's obviously a blatant lie!”

“Aw, you think so? Hmm well I guess I don't really know anything about love, so I wouldn't really know.”

Shintaro grimaced. It was too early in the morning to deal with this kind of thing. “Anyways, I know for sure I don't love anyone at the moment, and even if I did it wouldn't be one of your brothers. I'm sure.” Or was he sure. Either way he decided it would be good to forget this conversation and continue to school.

It didn't help when Konoha came up and gently grabbed his hand. “Shintaro...you don't like me?” 

“Uuuhhhhh uhh no I never said that. Sorry.” He didn't know why he added a 'sorry' at the end, but it felt right at the time.

Konoha did not seem cheered up by those words. His expression was as hard to read as ever. All Shintaro could tell is that the taller boy was upset, and it made him feel bad. 

“Common Shintaro, just give him a chance. If you make my brother sad, I'm gonna have to be sad too!” Haruka made a pouty face. 

Shintaro made a weird face again before saying, “Okay okay, you guys win. Okay! I'll uh, go out...with Konoha. Just for a little while. Trial run.”

“You don't have to make it sound like you're just using the trial period of a product, Shintaro!” 

“You're the one who was talking about it that way in the first place, Haruka!!” 

While Haruka and Shintaro exchanged their friendly banter, Konoha continued to quietly hold Shintaro's hand. By the time the nerd noticed, he was struck with sudden embarrassment. They then finally continued their way to school.

A little bit before they arrived, Shintaro insisted that Konoha let go of his hand. “It'd be embarrassing if anyone saw, okay? Especially that Kuroha. He'd definitely pick a fight.”

Konoha knitted his brow slightly in response. They had to separate to go to different classes in the end anyways, so their hand holding would have had to end eventually anyways. 

In class, Shintaro sat in his seat and recalled Kuroha's was right behind his. The boy wasn't there yet, but he would be. And that troubled Shintaro greatly.

What didn't trouble him though, was how Ayano was as giddy as usual. “Good morning, Shintaro!”

Shintaro yawned in response. “I'm too tired for this. I just wanna go home.”

“Aw common, don't be like that!” Ayano laughed to herself, and it made Shintaro feel a little bit better about everything. Though he wasn't going to admit that.

The peaceful moment was ruined as Kuroha came walking through the door. He sat down in his seat, and proceeded to stare at Shintaro.

“Why are you staring at me?” Shintaro asked. He then thought it might have been better if he just ignored Kuroha, but it was already too late.

Kuroha didn't seem like he was going to answer. He just stared with a rather troubled look on his face.

“Common Kuroha, you can tell us what's on your mind!” Ayano seemed carefree as always.

“Ugh, fine! Okay,” Kuroha was grumbling and clearly did not seem like he wanted to talk about what was troubling him. “I was just...I just was wondering why I like someone with such a dumbass look plastered on his face all the time.”

“Who's a dumbass!?” Shintaro stood up. Ayano seemed to be shocked at the sudden drama.

“You're the dumbass, dumbass. Who else here is as much of a dumbass as you.”

Shintaro was one hundred percent sure Kuroha was just trying to rile him up, since the only real dumbass asshole here was him. “Sure sure, say what you will, asshole.” He was not going to give this guy what he wanted.

Kuroha smirked. “Okay, dumbass. Since we're dating, how about I treat you to something after school today?”

There was a dull silence. Shintaro then slowly turned his head. “What.”

“I said I'll treat you to something. You like free shit, right?”

“What, wait no we are not dating.”

“Didn't we decide this all yesterday? You already breaking up with me?” Kuroha gave the fakest looking sad face Shintaro had ever seen. 

Of course, in retaliation Shintaro ended up blurting out, “If that's the case, then yeah I'm breaking up with you! And I'm already dating Konoha, so leave me alone!”

Another silence, this time more awkward than anything.

“Heey that's not fair. How come you break up with me, but not him?”

“Well uh,” Shintaro couldn't just admit that he was afraid of hurting Konoha's feelings. “He's just way cooler than you! Because you're...an asshole. Yeah!”

Kuroha just looked at him as if pitying him. “Well if he's cooler, than you gotta admit I'm hotter, right?”

“What. Just—you guys are twins. You're the same level of hot. But Konoha is more cool, so you are inferior.” The little argument was just getting more and more stupid, and Shintaro knew it. He just couldn't stop himself, no matter how embarrassing it was that everyone in the class could hear their argument.

“Naw, look at this.” Kuroha gestured towards his body. “Just look at this fine body I have. My hair is a much more luxurious glossy black than that messy white sheep moss. I condition, and I'm pretty sure he forgets to use even shampoo most of the time. And look at these eyes!” He pointed towards his eyes and leaned much too close to Shintaro for the shorter boy's comfort. “Aren't they just the perfect yellow? With all this, and then this fashion sense, there's no way I could lose to that loser.”

Shintaro grimaced. “You just made yourself seem a lot more pretentious than I thought you were in the first place. Aren't you a bit old to be wearing color contacts to school?”

“Hey hey hey, don't be so uptight. If it adds to my cool flare, I'll do it. If you're always gonna be 'too old' to do this and that, you're gonna be living a boring life.”

Even if it meant being boring or whatever, Shintaro just couldn't bring himself to care. “Okay fine I won't judge your crappy fashion sense. So how about you just leave me alone now.”

“If I just ignored you, that'd make me a pretty shit boyfriend.” Kuroha stretched his arms out and wrapped them around Shintaro. When Shintaro turned to shove him off, the first thing he saw was Kuroha's gross, deplorable expression. It was his usual smirk, but it irked Shintaro all the same.

Luckily, Shintaro was saved from his uncomfortable situation as the teacher came in and told everyone to sit properly and get ready for class. As Kuroha let go of Shintaro, he whispered, “If it would really make you that much more happy though, I guess I'll tone down on bugging you.”

Of course, Shintaro was not just going to believe everything the guy behind him was spouting out of his mouth, but it would sure be great if he really was gonna leave him alone for now.

Class passed by, and as break began Kuroha quickly removed himself from the premises. Shintaro was wary.

“Hmm maybe he really is going to give you some space for now.” Ayano was optimistic, as usual. It was evident she was a bit worried about the spat, though.

“Well I sure hope so, since with him gone, I can finally relax.” Shintaro leaned back into his chair and sighed deeply. 

Ayano gave a half-hearted chuckle, “Well it is pretty interesting you've gotten so popular all of a sudden, Shintaro! Who would've guessed!”

“Popular with the wrong crowd, though. I didn't ask for this life. I'd eat healthily for a month if it'd get me out of this situation.”

“He he...really. To be honest I don't think you'd be able to pull that off...” 

Shintaro narrowed his eyes at Ayano's honesty. It was true though. He couldn't imagine himself going down that path. He just didn't have that kind of self control. If it wasn't for family, he probably would be eating one meal a day with a side of 8 cans of soda. 

The classes throughout the day went by uneventfully, and Kuroha kept his word in leaving Shintaro in peace. It was way too suspicious, but it really was satisfying. Ayano proposed walking home together, which Shintaro was happy to accept.

That happiness was short lived however, as he ran into Kuroha at the school gates. He stood menacingly while leaning against the gate, with his hands behind his back.

“Um, what's the problem, Kuroha?” Ayano asked sweetly and cautiously.

“I...uh, I have business with Shintaro.”

“Didn't you say you were gonna stop harassing me? Stop harassing me.” 

“I'm not harassing you, okay! Like, even if I was earlier right now that's not my intention!” Kuroha pulled something out from behind him, and it was truly a sight to behold.

Ayano blushed and gaped, and Shintaro was just appalled. Kuroha was holding a bouquet. A bigass bouquet like something you'd find in a shoujo manga.

“Don't break up with me, you fucking dweeb! Here's some free shit, just like I promised!” Kuroha was also a bit red in the face. Doing something like this definitely would take quite some courage.

Of course, Shintaro was weak to things that happen in shoujo manga. Too weak. He was flustered and didn't know what to say. Being a spontaneous person, he acted on his first impulse.

And he ran. He ran away. Past Kuroha and into the sunset.

“W-wait a second, stop doing that! That running! Stop!” Kuroha turned to chase him. Ayano just seemed bewildered at what had taken place.

Quickly leaving the school behind him, Shintaro ran while letting out a noise akin to “aaaaaaaaaaaaaaah”. Seeing as he was not a very healthy person, he ran out of breath before even a minute had passed. Catching up to him was not a very difficult thing for Kuroha to do.

“Stop running! These flowers will get ruined if I end up dropping them or something!” When he did catch up to Shintaro, he pulled the weaker boy up by the collar and thrust the bouquet into his arms. “Take it! And protect it. This is...the symbol of my love.” He blushed.

“W-what did you just say.”

“I said is the symbol of my love, you flimsy weakass jersey-boy! The florist said it'd be a good idea to say it so don't say a goddamn word!” 

Shintaro collected his breathe before replying, “If you're really my 'boyfriend' now you could at least not call me stupid names you obviously are coming up with as you speak!”

Kuroha opened his mouth as if to call him another stupid name he just came up with on the spot, but instead nothing came out. Until he said, “I guess you have a point. Sorry, okay? Even though I tried reading more shoujo manga it just...I can't act like they do, okay!?”

They stared at each other for a few seconds. It was an embarrassing silence. “You...you read shoujo manga...for me?”

Kuroha sputtered out a “Y-yeah, so?? That's the number one source of romantic advice right!? That's what Haruka said at least...”

Shintaro was touched. He didn't want to accept those feelings, but he was actually kind of touched at this genuine act of shoujo romance. He felt like he was probably making a weird face, so he turned away to hide it. “Well okay, you win this time. I won't break up with you. For now, at least.”

He couldn't hear anything, but he did hear a sigh of relief from behind him. Kuroha was turning out to be a pretty...normal guy? Or more like, not as terrible as he first expected?

Those thoughts were cut short as Kuroha grabbed Shintaro by the collar again to spin him around and look at his face. Shintaro was indeed making a kind of weird face. Kuroha then put both hands on Shintaro's face and gave him the tongue to tongue tango.

After the initial pause of shock, Shintaro pushed Kuroha away with drastic and desperate motions. “W-w-wha-what do you th-think you're doing!”

Kuroha kept up a very serious expression. “I'm just sealing our love. Sealing it...by locking love away between our tongues!”

“Please just stop blurting out these disgusting phrases! Did you really read these somewhere!?”

The delinquent got a bit red. “Uh, I actually just said that one spur of the moment.”

“You made it up. Wow you're an embarrassment to your family, I'm sure.” The two teens glared at each other, but both were also blushing.

“Hey now, I couldn't possibly be the embarrassment when my brothers are as gay as I am!”

“I didn't say being gay was the embarrassing part! I was talking about the embarrassing things you keep saying!” Shintaro got redder just recalling the words from earlier. Today was almost as embarrassing as yesterday. It wasn't really that comparable since Shintaro was not used to being embarrassed in romantic situations.

Kuroha started pouting, and it really didn't suit his appearance at all. “So?? Don't be so fucking harsh. You're my first ever boyfriend so I'm still kinda level one at this lovey dovey doki-doki crap okay?”

“Okay fine. And, did you say both your brothers are gay??” That part of Kuroha's dialogue really struck out with Shintaro.

“Uh, well I'm just guessing there. But seeing as how both me and Konoha turned out this way, I wouldn't put it past him...”

“So you're just guessing.”

“...Yeah...but you'd trust your boyfriend's judgment of his brother, right?” The punk batted his eyelashes as if he thought that would make him more trustworthy.

“Don't leave me behind...”

Shintaro jumped before looking to find Konoha standing right there staring at them. “When'd you get here...”

“Just now.” Konoha stared blankly at him, but was evidently distressed. “I wanted to walk home with you too.”

Kuroha sneered, but surprisingly he didn't say any mean things. 

“Well, I was just getting chased by Kuroha earlier so that's why I left you at school, ha ha...sorry.” Again Shintaro had apologized without entirely meaning it. Seeing Konoha's pure puppy-like eyes juts seemed to take a hold of his heart. “You both are my...boyfriends, so...I guess we can go home together? By that of course I mean drop you guys at your place and I go to my place of course.”

“Aha! You finally accept it! That's great, boyfriend.” Kuroha grinned. Shintaro was surprised to find his smile almost pleasing when completely lacking in evil intent. 

Konoha also smiled. “Okay,” he said.

The three of them began walking home, and somehow they ended up having their arms linked. It was really awkward, as usual.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter will get even more awkward...believe it...
> 
> PS. I hope it's not too obvious I haven't taken a writing class in like 3 years...ha ha. Whatever.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really don't know what I'm doing...haha this chapter is admittedly not really the most interesting, but maybe I should just turn things hardcore next chapter *__*
> 
> Anyways my new goal is to try to wrap up this story somehow by making things intense starting next time I guess!

Momo was giving Shintaro the most incredulous look when he walked into the living room with a boy on each arm. He did not intend for things to turn out this way, but the Kokonoses refused to go home before going to Shintaro's place first.

“I'm not going to ask any questions, bro.” She returned to reading her magazine and put in her earphones.

Shintaro wanted to tell her that it wasn't what she thought it was, but sadly, it was exactly what she thought it was. There was nothing to correct this time. 

Kuroha blew some air into Shintaro's ear, making the shorter boy flinch and jump to the side, subsequently bumping into a cabinet. “Soo, are we gonna get busy in your room? Busy cuddling and shit I mean. 'Cause y'know, we gotta hit each base in order, right.”

“Please don't do that again,” Shintaro said in a stern voice. “I don't like to be startled.”

Kuroha only laughed in reply like the smug piece of shit he was. Konoha on the other hand started rubbing at Shintaro's ear.

“Does it feel better now?”

“Um, yeah it's fine! You don't have to do that, ha ha ha...” Shintaro tried to gently push him away, but it was difficult. Konoha tended to stick to him like a lovesick puppy.

It took a few seconds before Shintaro finally remembered to respond to Kuroha's great idea. “Ok we are not going to be doing any suspicious activity, and you two should probably go home–“

Before he could finish talking, Kuroha grabbed him and lifted him up bridal style. “Shush, talk later, party now.”

A loud sigh resonated through the living room and the three boys turned to see Momo looking quite upset. “Please oh please just get a room you guys. I don't want to see my stupid nerd brother getting manhandled by other men while I'm in the room! Just do your thing, but outside of my presence, got it!?”

“It's not my fault!” Shintaro yelled. He tried to get out of Kuroha's grip, but his skinny arms were too weak.

Kuroha cooed into his ear, “Yes it is, you big baby. I mean it's your fault for being so easy on the eyes.”

“He is NOT easy on the eyes!” Momo yelled. She was visibly very uncomfortable about this situation. “Please oh please spare me from this torture!”

Konoha shuffled his feet where he stood and only had to say, “Um, do you have snacks here?”

“Uhh I have some chips in my room if you want some,” Shintaro replied.

Kuroha started trotting towards Shintaro's room, the boyfriend still in his arms. “Why are you always so cordial with him and not me? I'm also gonna treat myself to some of these chips and no one can stop me.”

As Kuroha carried Shintaro to his bedroom, Konoha followed quietly while Momo looked pleased to have them finally out of the room. 

Though normally he would probably struggle, Shintaro felt pretty done and just passive aggressively went limp in Kuroha's arms. Sadly, the guy must have had some thick muscles hidden under those sleeves since the full weight of one full teen boy did not seem to affect him at all.

Either that or Shintaro was not as heavy as he thought he'd be, since it was true he probably did not have the most balanced diet in the world.

When he was eventually released from the confines of a bridal carry, Shintaro landed rather roughly on his bed. Konoha followed onto the bed and just sat there while Kuroha started snooping through the shelves and cabinets.

“Please don't go through my things,” Shintaro said. He didn't believe at all that Kuroha would heed his words though. “Anyways you wanted snacks, right? I don't want you starving to death so..,” reaching out to under the bed, Shintaro pulled out a bag of chips. Konoha was delighted.

After about half an hour of everyone basically doing their own thing, Kuroha was the one to first break the silence. “Okay, I don't think this is what boyfriends usually do when alone together. We should do something that is not boring.”

Shintaro had returned to his perch before the computer, and he turned slowly to give Kuroha a very narrow glance. “Like what. And don't say something stupid, I _will_ ignore you.”

Konoha was still eating potato chips. Shintaro had yet to notice that the boy had already gone through four bags of his secret stash.

Kuroha stood up and said “I'll be right back”, before leaving the room. Shintaro was rightfully suspicious, but ended up returning to arguing with people in anime forums. It was admittedly not a very good pastime, but Shintaro always found himself wasting all of his time once turning on his computer.   
He was also suddenly startled by a tapping on his shoulder.

The one standing there was the nicer boyfriend. He tilted his head cutely and asked, “What're you doing?”

“Well,” Shintaro started. He did not know how to continue or end his sentence without sounding like a worthless otaku. “I'm arguing with people on the internet.”

“Why?”

Of course Shintaro knew that Konoha was not one who could appreciate arguing. Actually he himself didn't appreciate arguing but he always found himself doing it anyways. “I don't know. I don't really have anything better to do. I should really be doing something productive right now. Let's leave before Kuroha comes back and do something more interesting.”

Kuroha walked back into the room with hands full of who knows what. “It's fun time, friends~ Shintaro, stay where you are in your seat. Konoha, eat more chips.”

Konoha opened another bag of chips, and before Shintaro could protest, there were hands on his head. “What're you doing,” he demanded, albeit nervously.

“I'm going to decorate your head,” stated Kuroha. His hands were actually full of neat items like hair ties, hair clips, hair pins and the like. 

“No.”

“Yes. I asked your sis for permission to use them and everything. I am a changed man.”

“No.”

Kuroha began his work, and Shintaro was a bit too nervous of his hair being ripped out to really resist violently. In the end he returned to the nicer and equally useless pastime of giving anime reviews on the same site he argued with people on.

It was really a very uneventful evening. When Kuroha finally passed Shintaro a mirror, he found himself to have his hairs clipped back and brushed quite evenly into some tiny pigtails. He probably needed a haircut. “Uhhh,” he said.

Arms draped over his front, and Kuroha's face came too close to Shintaro's for comfort. “So, how do you like the look?”

“Uh,” replied Shintaro. When he looked back at Kuroha, he found that the guy also had a new hair style. It was braided and clipped upwards into some strange high-ponytail twist or something. “What happened.”

All he got in reply was a nod in Konoha's direction, who happened to also be immediately behind his brother.

“I think Konoha is the more creative one here,” Shintaro said. Kuroha narrowed his eyes, while Konoha looked somewhat bashful. Kinda.

“Anyways, I do so much for you, but you ain't done nothing for me! Aren't we boyfriends? You should give me a prize for my unending affection.” Kuroha said this while pulling Shintaro out of his chair. The shorter boy just groaned in reply. 

“Isn't love supposed to be a built on doing things for others without expecting prizes in return? I'm starting to suspect you don't really love me, 'boyfriend.' Maybe you just want...my body. Or something.” He averted his gaze before suspiciously glancing back at Kuroha. Kuroha had a smug grin on his face.

Shintaro was then tossed onto the bed while Konoha just passively watched, as seemed to always be the case. Kuroha leaned towards Shintaro and said, “I can't say I don't want your skinny and unhealthily pale looking ass, but I wanna do this dating thing properly. We gotta hit the bases in order.”

He got a load of groans in response, and Shintaro turned over as if trying to sink into his bedsheets and die. “I still don't get why you even like me? I don't believe this love at first sight business, ok? I don't get why Konoha likes me either. Konoha do you hear this, I know I've helped you when you were lost in the mall a couple times, but I don't think this warrants love. I just can't help but question why this is happening.”

“Being with you...it feels nicer.” Konoha murmured this and blushed slightly. Not that Shintaro could see with his face buried in bed and all.

“Hey hey hey, he may be my rival, but don't put my lil bro on the spot. He's not good at expressing himself like the 5-year old he probably is.” Kuroha crawled onto the bed and grabbed Shintaro by the waist, bringing him into a nice hug. “I like you personally because you give me enriching feelings in my heart. I don't even know, okay? It's just something about you being a pathetic piece of shit with a cute face and cute voice and cute tone and cute--”

“Please stoooopppp stop stop stop,” groaned Shintaro. He didn't want to admit it but he was pretty flustered at being called cute. Even if he was also called a piece of shit in the same sentence. This is what he got for being a dateless teenage nerd. His saying stop was also kind of applying to Konoha joining in the hug too, since it was getting to be a very tight fit on his bed. Konoha had crawled in from the opposite side that Kuroha was, so Shintaro was very much caught in a twin sandwich. 

“I...don't really know how to say things well,” Konoha started, “but I really mean it when I saw I like you, Shintaro. Trust me, please. The way you talk to me and the way you do things, they all make me want to be by your side forever.” He snuggled in and squeezed Shintaro.

Kuroha squeezed his other side, and Shintaro was in a mess. There were too many people hugging him and saying nice things about him at the same time, and he was overwhelmed. His body was heating up very quickly from various reasons, and it really didn't help that Kuroha started to nibble on his ear. “S-stop that, I'm t-ticklish,” was all he could get out. 

The door slammed open and Momo was yelling something about dinner time before getting caught in her words. The door slammed again after an awkward silence. Shintaro would normally have wanted to die if it wasn't for the fact that he was actually kind of enjoying the stimulation he was receiving from his boyfriends. As soon as he realized this however, he jumped up and threw himself across the room. He would not give in.

“Heeyy we were getting so comfortable!”

Shintaro's head was in a mess. Human touch was just too much for him. “It's dinner time,” was all he managed out.

“Oh, I don't think I've met your parents,” said Konoha.

“My future in-laws!” added Kuroha.

At this point, Shintaro was too tired to make any sharp retorts.

They walked down to the dining room, and what awaited was a typical family dinner. Mama Kisaragi was giving a pretty happy looking smile. “Shintaro's on time for once! Maybe because we have guests!” 

Momo turned the other way and muttered, “I was sure he was gonna be skipping dinner 'cause of them.”

It seemed Momo had told their mom about the two guests, since there was enough food for everyone. Mama and Papa Kisaragi did not seem like very talkative folk, but they were indeed friendly. Kuroha also continually nudged Shintaro for permission to be the 'bearer of good news' as he put it. Shintaro was 400% sure that things would turn out terribly if that happened, so he insisted “Please leave the 'meeting the parents' scenario to if we manage to keep this up for at least a year.”

Shintaro thanked all the gods he could think of when dinner ended without any 'surprises.' Kuroha and Konoha also decided to peacefully leave afterwards, which was really great. What was worrying however was that Kuroha said “I'm thinking of changing my dating strategy, so I'm gonna be doing some research tonight.” Konoha on the other hand said, “Me too. I also should probably study hard.”

Whenever Konoha studied anything hard, it usually turned out awful if he didn't have guidance from a patient elder (eg. Haruka or someone), so Shintaro was pretty rightfully worried. But when he finally went to bed that night, he couldn't also help but to admit he was also suffering from what some people know as... 'the dokis.'

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeeeaahh haha thanks everyone for bearing with me so far! I'm surprised I even got 1 kudos, much less 60+...dang I've been convinced to try to get better at writing and stay in the fanfiction business. I even wrote something for another series, which I may post sometime later! (eg like in a month lol)
> 
> PS. The real meeting the parents scene WILL happen before the end of this story! Because that's my ultimate OTP fantasy. Having embarrassing and frustrating meetings with the parents.


End file.
